26 May 2010

It seems that every time I get worked up enough to write about something, someone beats me to the punch. Not too long ago I got an email about the men who guard the Tomb of the Unknowns. My spidey sense immediately began to tingle at catch phrases "for life," "swear an oath," and "never." So I googled up the National Cemetery website and the Tomb of the Unknown's site and verified my suspicions. Someone felt it necessary to embellish the already interesting story of these tomb guards by injecting a bunch of hyperbole and outright untruths. Isn't their job honorable enough without all the claptrap? It seems like I'm getting more of these sorts of emails lately. About the time I got a good rant worked up to write, I found this site as I looked for sources. Go there. They do it well enough. I don't have to reinvent the wheel.

May has been just about enough to wear a body out. We came out of April with unseasonably warm, beautiful weather, then dove into a week and a half of March rain. Once we shook that off, the gnats came out in attack mode, and the temps shot into the nineties. Between our family activities and my commitments at work, we've churned through three choir concerts, two band concerts, two recognition breakfasts, one honors awards night, a camping weekend involving no showers, exchange students from 15 countries and a voyageurs canoe, a junior high dance, two dance shows, and a retirement party. Still left: another campout, a graduation and, sadly, two funerals, one for a young lady gone far too soon.

I also made my semiannual leap of folly into MASC's production of Hello, Dolly! Mrs. Levi ought to keep me out of trouble for a few weeks.

Now it's time to fetch the McKid home from work. Here's hoping I can put my nose above water again soon.

02 May 2010

So you may have gotten this forward in your email, but it is too good not to share:

GOD:
St Francis, you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there on the planet? What happened to the dandelions, violets, milkweeds and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect no-maintenance garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long-lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honey bees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of colors by now. But, all I see are these green rectangles.

St. FRANCIS:
It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites. They started calling your flowers 'weeds' and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.

GOD:
Grass? But, it's so boring. It's not colorful. It doesn't attract butterflies, birds and bees; only grubs and sod worms. It's sensitive to temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that grass growing there?

ST. FRANCIS:
Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn.

GOD:
The spring rains and warm weather probably make grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy.

ST. FRANCIS:
Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it-sometimes twice a week.

GOD:
They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?

ST. FRANCIS:
Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.

GOD:
They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?

ST. FRANCIS:
No, Sir, just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.

GOD:
Now, let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And, when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?

ST. FRANCIS:
Yes, Sir.

GOD:
These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work.

ST. FRANCIS:
You aren't going to believe this, Lord. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it, so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.

GOD:
What nonsense. At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn, they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. It's a natural cycle of life.

ST. FRANCIS:
You better sit down, Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away.

GOD:
No!? What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter to keep the soil moist and loose?

ST. FRANCIS:
After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.

GOD:
And where do they get this mulch?

ST. FRANCIS:
They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.

GOD:
Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore. St. Catherine, you're in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?

ST. CATHERINE:
'Dumb and Dumber', Lord. It's a story about....

GOD:
Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story from St. Francis.